Review: Vox

Vox by Christina Dalcher
My rating: 0 of 5 stars

A difficult one to review. I like the idea, and it was handled well, but I wish the enemy hadn't been regular Christians. A new sect would have been much easier to take.

I didn't follow a lot of the science...I really hope it's not that easy to create aphasia in someone...and there seemed to be a lot of lucky coincidences along the way. Sometimes life is like that, of course. I liked this, and I'll read more books by the author, but it's not one of my top books for the year.


Receiving an ARC did not affect my review in any way.


The clock on the lab wall says five. I have less than forty eight hours to make what I know will be an irreversible decision.

My parents, this baby the size of an orange inside me, and Lorenzo balance on one side of the scale. Patrick and the kids, on the other. Two seemingly inevitable but different fates hang over each choice like a storm cloud. Stay and wait for Reverend Carl to rachet up his terrible game, or go and watch Europe crumble to its knees, close up, front row, best seats in the house.

Next to me, Lorenzo inches closer, enough so that our hands touch. It's a solid feeling, those fingers of his brushing mine.

But it's not enough.

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Review: That's Not What Happened

That's Not What Happened by Kody Keplinger
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I've seen other novels by Kody Keplinger; The DUFF: Designated Ugly Fat Friend, Shut Out. I've always thought they looked interesting, but I've never gotten around to reading them. I'll be changing that at my first opportunity. Kody is amazing.

It's a sadly current book, the story of a school shooting from the point of view of the survivors. As I write this, the Texas shooting is still in the news. By the time the book publishes, it'll be some other shooting.

The book is mostly from the POV of Lee, a teenager who was shot at, but not physically injured, during a shooting rampage in her school. A legend has built up around one particular victim, Lee's best friend, causing townsfolk to harass and abuse another survivor who tried to correct it. Lee knows the truth and is finally ready to come forward, but it's not going to be as simple as she thinks.

I started crying within a few chapters and never really stopped. This is an incredible book, heartfelt and real, showing a range of coping mechanisms used by the six survivors - forgetting, faith, happiness, ignoring, medication and alcohol. Each choice is treated and right for that person, although the alcohol user stops during the course of the novel, and no one is demonised for how they cope.

My only tiny problem, and it's very common across a lot of media, is that while initially a couple of the survivors were against Lee's plan, in the end they all came around and agreed it was for the best. Why couldn't they have dissenting opinions that were right for them? However, I see this a lot and it's not by any means a deal breaker.

I also loved that Lee is asexual. It's comparatively rare still, but gaining ground and it's nice to see. It's great to have books to recommend to people, especially like this when it's not a major focus, just a part of who she is.

A fantastic read. I'll definitely be trying more by this author.


Receiving an ARC did not affect my review in any way.

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Review: The Island

The Island by M.A. Bennett
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a very difficult book to review. The idea of it is brilliant; posh private school kids are stranded on an island, and the only one with any survival knowledge is the oppressed bully, leading to a reversal of the 'natural' order of things. (Even at that, though, there's never any mention that they should be boiling their drinking water, not even a "I curse the lack of equipment, as boiled water would be much safer" or anything like that. Minor complaint, I know, but still.)

It's an interesting read, and I was never tempted to put it down. Parts of it are difficult to read, though. Link, our 'hero', goes through some ugly phases, and though they're understandable they're still not easy to read. His parents also put me right off near the end. The rest of the characters are mostly ciphers, which is of course the whole point. And the ending of this one wasn't nearly as upsetting as the ending of S.T.A.G.S.

I'll definitely continue reading MA Bennett, and I hope to read many more.

Receiving an ARC did not affect my review in any way.

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